44 Facts About Bruce Springsteen

1. Bruce Springsteen changed his style and reached worldwide popularity with Born to Run in 1975.

2. Bruce Springsteen recorded his next three albums, Tunnel of Love, Human Touch (1992), and Lucky Town (1992), using mostly session musicians.

3. Bruce Springsteen was inducted into both the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999, received the Kennedy Center Honors in 2009, named MusiCares person of the year in 2013, and awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President Barack Obama in 2016.

4. Bruce Springsteen is ranked 23rd on Rolling Stones list of the Greatest Artists of All Time.

5. Bruce Springsteen spent his childhood in Freehold, New Jersey, where he lived on South Street.

6. Bruce Springsteen emigrated through Ellis Island and could not read or write when he arrived.

7. The name Bruce Springsteen is topographic and of Dutch origin, literally translated as "jump stone" but more generally a stepping stone used on unpaved streets or between two houses.

8. In ninth grade, Bruce Springsteen began attending the public Freehold High School, but did not fit in there either.

9. Bruce Springsteen graduated in 1967, but felt so alienated that he skipped his graduation ceremony.

10. In 1964, Bruce Springsteen saw the Beatles' televised appearances on The Ed Sullivan Show.

11. Bruce Springsteen acquired the nickname "the Boss" during this period, since he took on the task of collecting his band's nightly pay and distributing it amongst his bandmates.

12. Bruce Springsteen helped Springsteen perfect "Born to Run" by adding its memorable guitar line.

13. In October 1975, Bruce Springsteen appeared on the covers of both Newsweek and Time in the same week.

14. Bruce Springsteen played on the "We Are the World" song and album in 1985.

15. In 1992, after risking fan accusations of "going Hollywood" by moving to Los Angeles and working with session musicians, Bruce Springsteen released two albums at once: Human Touch and Lucky Town.

16. Bruce Springsteen won an Academy Award in 1994 for his song "Streets of Philadelphia", which appeared on the soundtrack to the film Philadelphia.

17. In 2002, Bruce Springsteen released his first studio effort with the full band in 18 years, The Rising, produced by Brendan O'Brien.

18. The title track gained airplay in several radio formats, and the record became Bruce Springsteen's best-selling album of new material in 15 years.

19. At the Grammy Awards of 2003, Bruce Springsteen performed the Clash's "London Calling" along with Elvis Costello, Dave Grohl, and E Street Band member Steven Van Zandt and No Doubt's bassist, Tony Kanal, in tribute to Joe Strummer.

20. Bruce Springsteen gave solo acoustic performances in support of Obama's campaign throughout 2008, culminating with a November 2 rally at which he debuted the song "Working on a Dream" in a duet with Scialfa.

21. On January 11, 2009, Bruce Springsteen won the Golden Globe Award for Best Song for "The Wrestler", from the Darren Aronofsky film by the same name.

22. Bruce Springsteen's Working on a Dream album, dedicated to the memory of Danny Federici, was released in late January 2009.

23. On July 31, 2012, in Helsinki, Finland, Bruce Springsteen performed his longest concert ever at 4 hours and 6 minutes and 33 songs.

24. Bruce Springsteen campaigned for President Barack Obama's re-election in Ohio, Iowa, Virginia, Pittsburgh, and Wisconsin.

25. Bruce Springsteen made his acting debut in the final episode of season three of Van Zandt's show Lilyhammer, which was named "Loose Ends" after a Bruce Springsteen song on the Tracks album.

26. On September 7, 2016, at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Bruce Springsteen performed for 4 hours and 4 minutes.

27. Bruce Springsteen supported Hillary Clinton's 2016 presidential campaign by performing an acoustic set of "Thunder Road", "Long Walk Home" and "Dancing in the Dark" at a rally in Philadelphia on November 7, 2016.

28. On November 22, 2016, Bruce Springsteen was presented with the Presidential Medal of Freedom award by Barack Obama.

29. Bruce Springsteen co-directed the film along with longtime collaborator Thom Zimny.

30. On May 29, 2020, Bruce Springsteen appeared remotely during a livestream, no-audience concert by the Dropkick Murphys at Fenway Park in Boston.

31. Bruce Springsteen performed the Dropkick Murphys song "Rose Tattoo" and his song "American Land", sharing co-vocals with Ken Casey on both songs.

32. On September 10, 2020, Bruce Springsteen released the single "Letter to You".

33. On November 16, 2020, Bruce Springsteen was featured as a guest singer for Bleachers' newest single, "Chinatown", for their 3rd studio album Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night.

34. On February 22, 2021, it was announced that Bruce Springsteen was releasing an eight-part podcast on Spotify titled Renegades: Born in the USA that would feature himself in conversation with Barack Obama discussing a wide range of topics including family, race, marriage, fatherhood, and the state of the US.

35. On June 7, 2021, Bruce Springsteen announced that his Bruce Springsteen on Broadway shows would return for a limited run at Jujamcyn's St James Theatre beginning on June 26, 2021.

36. On September 11, 2021, Bruce Springsteen performed "I'll See You in My Dreams" in tribute to the victims of the September 11 attacks.

37. Bruce Springsteen elaborated, "I don't participate in my religion but I know somewhere.

38. Bruce Springsteen dated actress Joyce Hyser for four years in the early 1980s.

39. Bruce Springsteen liked her voice, and after the performance he introduced himself to her.

40. Opposites in background, the two had an age difference, and Bruce Springsteen's traveling took its toll on their relationship.

41. Phillips and Bruce Springsteen separated in the spring of 1988, but the separation was not made public.

42. Bruce Springsteen appeared at several rallies in support of Obama's campaign throughout 2008.

43. At an Ohio rally, Bruce Springsteen discussed the importance of "truth, transparency and integrity in government, the right of every American to have a job, a living wage, to be educated in a decent school, and a life filled with the dignity of work, the promise and the sanctity of home".

44. In May 2021, Bruce Springsteen became the eighth recipient of the Woody Guthrie Prize, a prize that honors an artist who speaks out for social justice and carries on the spirit of the folk singer.